by Brian Mansur
30
Location: CIC, MSV Tsunami_
“Attention all hands,” Claire said. “Immunity expiring in five minutes.”
The order everyone expected from Paulson followed. “Signal the fleet. Secure for separation, and standby to thrust.”
Behind her, Sean tightened his shoulder straps and fought to stay relaxed. He'd escaped Lakshmi remarkably unscathed but still felt nauseous after tumbling through space for several minutes. A MAC had been on patrol for emergency-detached pods and ejected personnel such as Sean. Once it had brought him back to the Tsu, Paulson had jokingly chided him for abandoning his new assignment.
He consoled himself in having at least taken out a mech.
While waiting for the immunity to end, he found himself worrying about Sarah, and what was happening on the colony. He checked the brigade’s comms status for the fiftieth time. Still jammed.
Claire said, “Airlocks sealed. Radiators retracting. Auto-separation sequence start. T-minus sixty seconds and counting.”
This would be their most vulnerable moment, Sean reflected. As ships broke away, each would lose Commander Rafe’s protection. A hit to any one of them would lob shrapnel into the others. By splitting up early, they hoped Rafe’s remaining immunity would discourage an attacker from risking harm to the Tsu.
“Captain,” the plotter said. “Lakshmian flotilla is thrusting for us. One-third gee.”
Paulson responded without delay. “Comms, warn them that we’ll fire if they don’t withdraw immediately.”
The seconds ticked by. Sean shook his head. As before, the vessels ignored all communications attempts. He cursed the Warden rule preventing warships from maneuvering within one hundred kilometers of a habitat unless on docking approach. At their present distance, the colony’s bulk provided too little cover to be useful. There would be no hiding from Lilith’s nuclear lances.
The plotting chief said, “They’re in the engagement sphere.”
“Attention, fleet,” Paulson announced. “This is BELCOM actual. Break for Delta formation. Weapons free. Firing order Foxtrot Uniform Bravo One.”
“Separation initiated,” Claire said the next instant. Sean felt the ship pivot. A handful of moments later and the main engine ignited at maximum thrust. Seconds after that, the ships began to disgorge missiles. By the first salvo’s end, the fleet had safely dispersed into a diamond-shaped wall with the Tsunami at its center. As one, they accelerated to meet the Lakshmians.
Claire said, “Immunity expired.”
Sean felt his body surging with adrenaline. This is it.
Then the A.I. announced, “Brigade comms re-established.”
Sean’s heart stopped. His eyes darted to the downlink icon. It had winked green.
“Claire, call Lieutenant Sarah Riley!”
After several rings, the woman’s face appeared in a window. Her beautiful blue eyes seemed empty. Vacant.
“Sarah?” he asked with caution.
“Sean,” she replied. Her hollow voice sent his heart into a paroxysm of anxiety.
Something’s very wrong.
“Are you safe, Sarah?” he asked.
“For now, but do you know what’s happened here?”
Sean shook his head. “The Wardens locked the troops down. We’ve been blind ever since.”
Pain flickered in Sarah’s eyes. “Sean, they’re fitting the Lakshmians with slave collars. That A.I., Natrix, is running them. You have to warn…”
The plotter’s voice interrupted Sarah. “Ballistics! Tracking five of them!”
Paulson shouted, “Evasive action!”
Sean’s gaze whipped to the tactical map. Blips sped from the Lakshmian ships. He knew that if those were long-range lances, the Mykonians could do nothing to stop them. He also had no doubt that the Tsunami would be one of their targets.
Sarah saw alarm spread across his face. “Sean?” she asked, fear lacing her voice.
“I’ve got to go, Sarah,” he said. “Stay alive!” He cut the connection, not wanting her last memory of him to be his death.
They had only begun to get to know one another, and he wanted so much to find out if they might have a future together. He knew now it was not to be.
A handful of heartbeats later, the plotting chief shouted, “Detonations!”
He had time for one last thought.
Goodbye, Sarah.
Then the roiling plasma of several fusion bursts streaked into the Mykonian formation. But not one of them touched the Tsunami.
Sean blinked and looked around the CIC.
“Report!” Paulson ordered.
In a panting voice, the man at scopes said, “Direct hits to the Victory, Implacable, and Summoner.”
The woman at comms tried to keep her voice steady as she added, “We’ve lost contact with…”
Sean called up an image of the nearby Victory. The blast had flattened her hull. Sparkling cherry-red and yellow-glowing debris spun away from the twisting wreck. Behind the horrid realization that a quarter of their fleet had been destroyed, Sean thought, We should be dead. Why are we still alive?
He checked the tactical map. All five bombs had exploded, but only three had produced a death ray. The other two, presumably meant for the Tsunami and Sorvino, had disintegrated. But why? he asked. He traced their paths back to a single ship: the Godavari.
Before he could explore the puzzle further, Claire announced, “The Wardens have released the ground forces from lock-down, but now there is an inter-ship comms block in place.” She paused then added, “And I just lost the colony downlink again.”
Sean cursed. Lilith’s surprises keep on coming. By nixing their communications, the fleet’s ability to coordinate fire would be degraded.
The plotter said, “New radar contacts from Lakshmi.” A second later he shouted, “Missiles launched!”
The map around Lakshmi erupted with trace lines. Sean’s heart ramped again at the sight of several hundred rockets streaking for the fleet’s survivors. Whatever had happened to Lilith, it seemed she would have her revenge upon the fleet.
“Counter-fire!” Paulson ordered. “Lasers, prioritize non-standard silhouettes. Quick-turn our bow to the colony and launch reserves as needed!”
Sean clenched his jaw. They knew exactly when to hit us.
The Tsunami and her consorts unleashed still more of their missiles. While those raced away, laser batteries picked off one threat after another.
Sean caught his breath. He knew Lilith would have been stupid not to hide some lances in that swarm.
Punctuating his fears, the tactical map flagged dozens of icons with flashing boxes.
The plotter said, “Mini-Casabas deploying!”
The defenders aimed their lasers to slag the nuclear threats. As Sean dreaded, the lack of comms resulted in several shots being wasted on the same target.
“Detonations!”
As soon as the word had reached Sean’s ears, he knew the Tsunami had been spared. At that distance, the nuclear flame would have struck in less than an eyeblink.
“Report,” Paulson demanded.
The plotter said, “No damage to the fleet, Captain, but we lost a lot of counter-missiles.”
“Fire reserves,” Paulson ordered.
They’re eroding our strength before we get close to their warships.
The map technician next said, “Enemy ordnance bearing down on us!”
Railguns and laser turrets poured fury into the remaining hoard. Missiles slashed through space to converge and die with one another. Those that survived faced streams of depleted uranium from the point defense cannons. Unfortunately, Sean saw that their uncoordinated defenses were being overwhelmed.
Sean’s body jerked as the Tsunami’s lateral thrusters tried to push the lumbering ship from the path of several hurtling missile fragments.
Paulson ordered, “Shutter main mirror.”
Two missile icons flashed orange. Claire shouted, “All hands, brace for impact!�
� Across the CIC, everyone ducked.
The next instant, the room exploded with silent violence. A brilliant fireball blossomed then wilted in the ship’s near-vacuum. At the same time, shrapnel and bodies shot about the cabin like confetti in a snow globe. Chunks pelted Sean, making him flinch and scream.
It took several breaths before the flurry lessened. When Sean dared to look up, he beheld utter devastation. Red emergency lights illuminated a cloud of debris. Through it, Sean saw the CIC’s forward half had been scoured of equipment and people. Stars shone through a ragged gash that reached to the deck below. He panted for a few breaths, trying to understand how he’d survived the devastation without so much as a suit breach. He prodded his brain to prioritize what he should do next.
The ship. He had to ensure that the ship was still in the fight.
He stopped a floating metal brace with his hands before it could conk his helmet. Beyond it, he saw the captain sitting motionless in her seat. “Claire,” he stammered, “report.”
In response, a status of the ship’s major systems and most significant damage appeared in Sean’s HUD. Almost every weapon system except their missiles blazed red.
Claire said, “Sir, Auxiliary Control suffered a direct hit. I have no contact with the XO there.”
A wash of icy fear sent Sean shivering. He was next in line of succession.
Activating his magnetic boots, Sean wove his way through the wreckage to Paulson. He put a hand on her shoulder. Medical data fed through the optical connection. Her suit had been ruptured in several places, but the vitals remained stable.
He keyed a channel. “All hands, this is Lieutenant Merrick. I’m assuming command. Get your wounded to sickbay and report your status to Claire. Damage control teams, focus on restoring propulsion and the main laser.”
He was unbuckling the captain when a figure stepped up, startling him. “I’ve got her,” Commander Hastings said on the local net.
Sean nodded. He called out, “Any survivors in the CIC, sound off.”
Claire answered for the dead and wounded. “I’m only detecting search and rescue beacons, sir.”
Sean shuddered. They’d lost so many: the earnest comms tech, their plotting chief, and over a dozen others.
“Signal the fleet with our running lights,” he said. “Let them know our condition.”
Claire replied, “Working on it, sir. Most of them look to be in as bad a shape as we are.”
While slipping into the captain’s undamaged day room, Sean tried to squelch his mounting frustration. Their fleet was wrecked. They had no voice comms. He didn’t even have a way of letting Sarah know he was alive.
His eyes widened at his memory of her last words. “Claire, did you get a chance to relay Lieutenant Riley’s report about the Wardens putting the Lakshmians into slave collars?”
“I did, sir, but I don’t think the fleet’s in a position to do much about it.”
Sean groaned. He had a sudden premonition of ten thousand civilians charging with clubs held high. A desperate train of thought swept through him. The slave collars should work under the same Warden rules that governed the ones at Celes. Any commands to the collars had to originate from an A.I. server bunker. Destroy the bunkers, and the collars couldn’t be used to coerce the people.
Sean came to a terrible conclusion. Even though the Wardens allowed only one bunker per segment, the brigade couldn’t hope to knock them all out—not with the whole colony turned against them. That left the task up to the fleet.
Unfortunately, there had been good reasons why Paulson hadn’t yet holed the bunkers from space. The Wardens had no obligation to patch any breeches before the air bled out. Who knew if the colonists would survive in the sub level shelters until atmosphere could be restored.
Sean shook his head. He wanted someone else to make this decision.
“Tactical,” he ordered. The 3D spatial grid with the Tsu at its center appeared. He noted that half of the Mykonian ships coasted without power. Did everyone take a hit? The Lakshmians, with full reaction mass tanks, had chosen to evade the Mykonian missile swarm.
They’ll be back to harass us, Sean realized. He also understood that if he struck the colony, the Tsu would have far fewer missiles left for defense.
But for all he knew, Natrix could be forcing the colonists to prepare more rockets to finish off the fleet. And more frightening still, she could already have the colonists marching on the brigade. He envisioned Sarah being carried off by a desperate mob.
He made his decision.
“Claire,” he said, “target Reapers on the colony’s command and control bunkers. Three missiles each site, except for Segment 5.”
“That will use up almost all of our conventional warheads, sir. And they can’t guarantee a kill.”
“I’m not going to risk destroying the colony by using nukes. Advise the fleet of our intentions then fire. And don’t bother me with what they have to say about it until after it’s done.” Come what may, he knew that this was the only way to save Sarah and the ground troops without wiping out the civilians.
Claire signaled her compliance. A minute later, the Reapers lashed out at the colony. A few minutes after that and pinprick explosions dotted the rotating cylinder’s length.
Location: Segment 1, Warden courier ship, Lakshmi Colony_
Emperor Henry Wilkinson frowned as Natrix reported the destruction of all the server bunkers. I’ve lost the colony, he thought. He couldn’t even send a termination order to the population’s slave collars.
He also reflected that if the crews of the Rajput and Godavari hadn’t sabotaged their long-range lances, the Mykonian fleet would have already been annihilated. At that moment, the mechs aboard were slaughtering the Lakshmian crews for their treachery. The onboard A.I.’s would have to make do without them.
He sniffed. Fortunes of war.
At least he’d knocked out the Tsunami with the colony’s missile barrage along with at least five other ships. The communications blackout weapon had helped ensure all enemies took severe damage, or so Natrix assured him. His forces should be able to clean up the survivors with little trouble.
“Time to cut our losses,” he said. “Natrix, nuclear mission. Once my courier is at a safe distance, demolish the colony.”
The A.I. remained silent.
“Natrix, acknowledge.”
The Warden enforcer beside him spoke, “Phase Four initiated.”
Henry’s eyes narrowed. Forgetting himself, he asked, “What are you talking about?”
The Warden mercifully took no offense. Instead, it said, “You have activated Phase Four. All software cache weapons are revoked. The colony’s Unrestricted Warfare condition is rescinded. All Arbiters have been locked.”
“What! You can’t be serious! How am I supposed to conquer without—”
A metal fist caught Henry in the cheek, breaking it in three places and knocking him to the floorboard. Gasping from the pain, he pushed himself up. Emboldened by rage, he stood toe to toe with the Warden.
Henry said, “You could destroy the Mykonians any time you want. Why put us through this charade?”
The monolithic robot regarded the human. “You can always resign. We will find another to replace you.”
Henry snarled. “Tell me the truth, Warden. Is it possible for Celes and me to defeat the Mykonians?”
Without hesitation, the enforcer said, “It is, but the time for Phase Two overrides has ended. The phase of arenas and challenges is yet to come. Until then, you fight under standard rules.”
This is nothing more than a twisted game. For whose benefit or for what purpose, he didn’t know. Maybe the theories about the Wardens only wanting to caretake one hundred million humans were true, and this was their twisted way of culling the population. Whatever the reason, what choice did he have?
He considered his position. After the Lakshmian armada crippled the remaining Mykonian fleet, his seven remaining colonies could consolidate their strength
. He could hunker down and wait for the warships Lilith had bought from Celes to arrive. He might even be able to convince the Celesians to send more aid despite the risk of open war with Mykon.
Things could be worse.
“Very well,” he decided. “I’ll play.”
Location: Officer’s quarters, MSV Tsunami_
At long last, Sean felt that the Mykonians’ luck had turned. It began with the restoration of communications. Hearing from brigade that Lakshmi had been liberated lifted everyone’s spirits. Sean reveled in the vindication of his strike on the bunkers. He celebrated by exchanging texts with Sarah. Enough to assure him that she was safe.
For over an hour after that, the Lakshmians meandered around the Mykonian missile barrage. This gave the savaged fleet precious time to recover. Though some ships remained out of action, the Tsunami restored a laser furnace, the fusion drive, and its spinal laser.
From his makeshift combat information center in the officer’s quarters, Sean watched the Lakshmians expend obscene quantities of reaction mass to accelerate back into the engagement zone. They didn’t quit before reaching a closing velocity of three kilometers-per-second.
As they crossed the nine-thousand-kilometer mark, Claire said, “Signal from acting flag. Tsunami to attack with main gun.”
Sean put on a grim smile. Let’s see if they have any big nuclear lances left. He didn’t think so. The time to use them would have been at the battle’s start.
“Claire, set laser furnace to hundred-megawatt output, full second beam durations on standard cooling cycle. Lock with the Godavari and commence firing.”
After Claire confirmed his orders, the Tsunami’s long-range mirror unshuttered and poured forth ultraviolet wrath. An electronic warble marked the first hit. Although he couldn’t see it, a millimeter of armor had been etched out of the Godavari’s hide across a forty-centimeter-wide area.
Claire reported, “Scopes indicate all targets are rolling.”
With vengeful glee, Sean thought, Surprise.
Another pulse burst from the Tsunami’s nose. After so many setbacks, after so many deaths, he dared to believe that their opponent had finally blundered. Every twenty seconds, the battleship pounded the frigate with another shaft of invisible heat.
